Alternative lighting devices to replace incandescent light bulbs differ from incandescent light bulbs in the manner that energy is converted to light. Incandescent light bulbs include a metal filament. When electricity is applied to the metal filament, the metal filament heats up and glows, radiating light into the surrounding area. The metal filament of conventional incandescent light bulbs generally has no specific power requirements. That is, any voltage and any current may be applied to the metal filament, because the metal filament is a passive device. Although the voltage and current need to be sufficient to heat the metal filament to a glowing state, any other characteristics of the delivered energy to the metal filament do not affect operation of the incandescent light bulb. Thus, conventional line voltages in most residences and commercial buildings are sufficient for operation of the incandescent bulb.
However, alternative lighting devices, such as compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs and light emitting diode (LED)-based bulbs, contain active elements that interact with the energy supply to the light bulb. These alternative devices are desirable for their reduced energy consumption, but the alternative devices have specific requirements for the energy delivered to the bulb. For example, compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs often have an electronic ballast designed to convert energy from a line voltage to a very high frequency for application to a gas contained in the CFL bulb, which excites the gas and causes the gas to glow. In another example, light emitting diode (LEDs)-based bulbs include a power stage designed to convert energy from a line voltage to a low voltage for application to a set of semiconductor devices, which excites electrons in the semiconductor devices and causes the semiconductor devices to glow. Thus, to operate either a CFL bulb or LED-based bulb, the line voltage must be converted to an appropriate input level for the lighting device of a CFL bulb or LED-based bulb. Conventionally, a power stage is placed between the lighting device and the line voltage to provide this conversion. Although a necessary component, this power stage increases the cost of the alternate lighting device relative to an incandescent bulb.
One conventional power stage configuration is the buck-boost power stage. FIG. 1 is an example circuit schematic showing a buck-boost power stage for a light-emitting diode (LED)-based bulb. An input node 102 receives an input voltage, such as line voltage, for a circuit 100. The input voltage is applied across an inductor 104 under control of a switch 110 coupled to ground. When the switch 110 is activated, current flows from the input node 102 to the ground and charges the inductor 104. A diode 106 is coupled between the inductor 104 and light emitting diodes (LEDs) 108. When the switch 110 is deactivated, the inductor 104 discharges into the light emitting diodes (LEDs) 108 through the diode 106. The energy transferred to the light emitting diodes (LEDs) 108 from the inductor 104 is converted to light by LEDs 108.
The conventional power stage configuration of FIG. 1 provides limited control over the conversion of energy from a source line voltage to the lighting device. The only control available is through operation of the switch 110 by a controller. However, that controller would require a separate power supply or power stage circuit to receive a suitable voltage supply from the line voltage. Additionally, the switch 110 presents an additional expense to the light bulb containing the power stage. Because the switch 110 is coupled to the line voltage, which may be approximately 120-240 Volts RMS with large variations, the switch 110 must be a high voltage switch, which are large, difficult to incorporate into small bulbs, and expensive.
Shortcomings mentioned here are only representative and are included simply to highlight that a need exists for improved power stages, particularly for lighting devices and consumer-level devices. Embodiments described here address certain shortcomings but not necessarily each and every one described here or known in the art.